Dynamics of Maize Production in Changing Climatic Scenario of Bihar: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

Abstract

"The study attempted to capture the changing scenario of maize production and its efficiency in Bihar agriculture using an unbalanced panel stochastic frontier model in a dataset of all three agro-climatic zones over a period of 15 years (2006-2020). The findings indicated that increasing crop area, machinery used, and irrigation all had a significant impact on maize productivity. A random effect of the Tobit model for panel data is employed to identify the factors that affect technical efficiency. The technical efficiency of maize production has an influence on the maximum temperature, increasing the maximum temperature limit that is detrimental to maize production. The technical score of the current maize production technology is 0.83 indicates that Bihar’s maize production is 83% technically efficient when accounting for climatic factors like maximum and minimum temperatures and rainfall. Technical efficiency scores for Zones 1 and 2, which are well known for being intensely maize-producing regions, are 0.84 and 0.88, respectively. Since crop leftover is distinct from maize production and may be utilized to increase technical efficiency, crop residue is strongly related to maize’s technical efficiency. The highest levels of technical efficiency were seen in Bihar’s maize production from 2006 to 2020, with an average technical efficiency of 0.88. Bihar’s agricultural Zone 2 has a maximum technical efficiency of 0.97, making it the state’s top producer of maize."